Pete Townshend says the Who can now cover "Every Shade"

Pete Townshend says that the Who are finally capable of encapsulating all the different types of music he's been writing. Townshend, who for years felt constrained by the stylistic boundaries of the Who, now feels liberated, explaining to Bend, Oregon's bendweekly.com that, "Our music is a real mixture of acoustic, light rock and heavy rock. That reflects better what I have always done in my own life and solo work. So at last Roger (Daltrey) and I feel we both can view the Who as a vehicle for every shade of my songwriting, not just the bravura and bombast."

Townshend touched upon the fact that in order to make room in the nightly set list for the band's new Endless Wire album, several fan favorites -- including songs from the band's 1973 Quadrophenia -- have been set aside for the moment: "Some fans may feel slighted, or cheated in some way, but the old music is there always, and it is a joy to play it live because of the way it triggers an audience to an unexpected level."

Townshend says that the Who were among the most versatile bands of their era: "The band the Who never gave me a clear brief. They never said to me, 'We wanna be a comedy act,' but if I gave them comedy songs they were brilliant at them. They never said to me, 'We wanna be a girl-friendly band,' but if I gave them a love song they would do it brilliantly. They never said 'We want to be a heavy metal group, if I gave them a heavy metal song,' they did it brilliantly. They could do anything -- but they never gave me a brief. Where did I get my brief? I got my brief from the audience."

The Who perform tonight (Tuesday, March 13th) in Tampa, Florida at the Ford Amphitheatre at the State Fairgrounds.